Lack of Men

Saw this article on the BBC site and found it interesting. Since women now form the majority of university graduates in more and more countries. Therefore many of them will have to marry less educated men or stay single.

The story of Miranda and Steve from Sex and the City comes to mind. That shouldn't a problem, should it? Yet in the series, Miranda could not do it, and the article below implies she's not the only one struggling with this new reality.

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Women graduates 'desperately' freeze eggs over 'lack of men'
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-40504076

Professional women are freezing their eggs due to a "dearth of educated men to marry", a US study has claimed.

Yale University researchers suggested an "oversupply" of graduate women left them struggling to find a partner and "desperate" to preserve fertility.

They said the "man deficit" was worse in countries where more women were going to university, as in the UK.

The researchers interviewed 150 women who had frozen eggs, of whom 90% said they could not find a suitable partner.

Author Prof Marcia Inhorn said the research challenged perceptions that women put off having a baby so they could prioritise their job.

"Extensive media coverage suggests that educational and career ambitions are the main determinants of professional women's fertility postponement, especially as they 'lean in' to their careers," she said.

"Rather, they were desperately preserving their fertility beyond the natural end of their reproductive lives, because they were single without partners to marry."

'Buying time'

Speaking at the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology conference in Geneva, Switzerland, Prof Inhorn thought there were "not enough graduates for them".

In the majority of cases the women, who were treated at eight IVF clinics in the US and Israel and interviewed between June 2014 to August 2016, said they could not find an educated man who was willing to commit to family life.

"Women lamented the 'missing men' in their lives, viewing egg freezing as a way to buy time while on the continuing - online - search for a committed partner," Prof Inhorn said.

'Painful process'

Prof Adam Balen, president of the British Fertility Society, said that he had noticed a "big shift" in UK society, with many university-educated women delaying starting a family.

"In my clinic I certainly see more older women seeking fertility treatment than in the past," he said.

The research comes amid a sex imbalance at British universities. In the academic year 2015-2016, 56% of UK students were women and 44% men, according to the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

Prof Balen warned that freezing eggs can be a painful and costly process.

"Freezing eggs for a future pregnancy is not a decision to be taken lightly," he said.

"The technology in egg freezing has improved a great deal but it is still no guarantee of a baby later in life.

"Women choosing to 'bank' eggs until they are ready to start a family have to go through painful procedures and what can be a difficult regime of medications - this is not without potential risks to the woman undertaking the procedure."